The Qinling Mountains have high springs, lush vegetation, and the most peculiar lakes on the mountains. It reminds people of the wonderful process of collecting water in the cirques and valleys after the glaciers receded a few years ago.
The further you go up, the colder the climate becomes, the wind blows quickly and the clouds surge, and the green pines seem to be floating in the sea of clouds.
Since we had deviated from the original route by an unknown number of miles, we had actually lost our way for a long time.
However, after severely inflicting heavy losses on the enemy, I felt excited and even more afraid of the enemy's backup, so I hurried into the mountains, thinking that I could reach the Chu territory as long as I crossed the Qinling Mountains, and I would make plans later.
Before dusk, we climbed left and turned right before setting up camp in a low valley with heavy fog.
Everyone put on furs to keep out the cold and worked hard. Some of the guards chopped down trees to make fires, and some took out fodder to feed the horses.
Ji Yanran and her two daughters were responsible for changing Wu Da's dressing.
Wu Da woke up and realized that he was out of danger. He was so happy and moved that he shed tears and his mood improved greatly.
At this time, Jing Shan and Wu Shu came back from hunting a mountain deer and excitedly reported the discovery of a hot spring outside the valley, adding to the jubilant atmosphere.
Ji Yanran and Zhao Zhi couldn't even afford a moment's patience, so they ordered Jing Shan and Wu Guang to lift the Wu Da and drag Xiang Shaolong into the largest hot spring.
After exiting the valley, the view suddenly opened up.
Numerous peaks stood in opposition to each other, and the plants were divided vertically according to the terrain. A spring flowed through the mouth of the valley, and the steam rose. They went upstream, and in less than two hundred steps, they found a large warm pool about half a foot wide surrounded by old pines.
More than ten feet deep, it is like a fairyland in the mountains, magnificent and charming.
The hot spring trickles out from the purple-black granite holes, which makes everyone feel happy.
"Hey"
Zhao Zhi suddenly retracted his hand that dipped into the spring water, and said coquettishly: "How can you take a bath when it's so hot?"
Wu Shu said respectfully: "Ask the little man to go back and get the bucket. Just bring the water up and wait for the water to cool down before you can use it."
Ji Yanran said with regret: "If you can't fully immerse yourself in the pool, you will lose your fun."
Xiang Shaolong smiled and said: "Talented girl and Zhizhi, please don't worry, we are just going in the wrong direction. If we go down, the spring water will gather in another place. Since it has been exposed to the air for a long time, the temperature should be much more suitable."
.”
The two women's mood immediately improved, and they took the lead to search downriver. They walked more than 500 steps to the lower place, climbed over several piles of well-distributed boulders, and found a large emerald green pool like a natural mirror embedded in a stone.
On the stage, the surrounding trees are deep, the water is clear, and the heat is greatly reduced.
The two women cheered and explored the lake water. When they realized that Xiang Shaolong had expected it to be right, it was indeed a temperature that humans could bear, they almost jumped into the lake.
Wu Guang and the two men immediately put down Wu Da, and the two women took off his shirt and took water from the warm pool to wash his wounds.
Seeing that his wound was 70% or 80% healed, Xiang Shaolong said with great relief: "As long as Xiaoda's fever is gone, he should recover soon."
Uda's wound was rinsed with hot water, and he groaned in comfort: "Madams, do you want to fully immerse yourself in the pool?"
Ji Yanran stood up with a blush on her face and said to Jing Shan and the others: "Did you hear your brother's request? Why don't you come and serve him?"
The two boys arrived at his command and while they were taking off his clothes, Xiang Shaolong and the two girls moved to the high cliff on the other side of the pool, sat down leisurely, and enjoyed the vast and magnificent mountain scenery.
Where the spring flows down, there is a canyon with a depth of 100 feet, with cliffs facing each other on both sides, and pines and cypresses standing on the top of the cliffs. In the dim afterglow of the sunset, bursts of mist sway among the peaks, and the beauty of the scenery is fascinating.
The two women held Xiang Shaolong's arms tightly on the left and right, and were speechless for a moment.
After looking at it for a while, Xiang Shaolong said: "Yanran has been to Chu State, are you familiar with its history?"
Ji Yanran gave him a look that was both angry and charming, but said nothing. When Xiang Shaolong was scratching his head and didn't know what he said wrong, Zhao Zhi came to the rescue and said: "My husband dares to doubt the knowledge that Sister Yanran has in mind. You should be punished."
Give him a good beating."
Ouda's moans of comfort could be heard from behind. Xiang Shaolong turned around and saw that Jing Shan and Wu Guang were both naked in the bathing pool. They even waved to him to express their pleasure.
Seeing the situation, he couldn't help but laugh and said: "Good wife Ji, a talented woman, please forgive me for being rude to my husband. May I ask what the glorious history of the Chu country is? What is the current situation of the country?"
Ji Yanran then returned her anger and rejoiced, saying in her sweet voice: "The Chu State was indeed very powerful for a time, and almost occupied all the fertile land in the south." Then there was a look of confusion in her eyes, wondering if she thought of her own death.
country, because the Yue Kingdom was finally annexed by the Qiang Chu.
Xiang Shaolong leaned over and kissed her cheek, lovingly saying: "The green mountains are still there, the sunsets are red several times, but the past is gone. Don't think so much about it."
Ji Yanran and Zhao Zhi were moved at the same time.
Xiang Shaolong knew that he had stolen the creations of "descendants", and he smiled bitterly and sighed.
Ji Yanran praised: "The green mountains are still there, and the sunsets are red several times. It has profound meaning and makes people feel low. Who can say it more profoundly than my husband?"
Zhao Zhiyi said in confusion: "My husband is sitting in front of the sunset, speaking in writing, I will make you fall in love."
Xiang Shaolong felt ashamed and changed the subject: "Yanran hasn't spoken about the current situation in Chu State yet."
Ji Yanran's beautiful eyes were melancholy, watching the sunset from a distance, and murmuring as if she was sleepwalking: "In the last years of King Huai of Chu, Qin used Shang Yang's reforms to become stronger, and its policy of alliance and horizontal annexation was successively successful, but Chu's alliance to resist Qin was a failure.
The two battles of Danyang and Lantian were both major defeats for Qin. The heaviest blow was the loss of Hanzhong and Shangyu, which were six hundred miles away. Wei took the opportunity to attack Chu's neighbor Zheng. At this point, Chu changed its entire national policy.
There will be gains and losses from now on, do you want me to know the details?"
Her description was concise and concise. Although Xiang Shaolong didn't know where Danyang, Lantian, or Hanzhong and Shangyu were, he could still make a rough guess.
He nodded and said: "Anyway, those three boys are not willing to climb up so quickly. Let's just have a chat."
Zhao Zhi didn't know that both Wu Guang and Jing Shan had entered the pool, so he couldn't help but turn around and look at them. His pretty face turned red and he didn't look back.
Xiang Shaolong secretly thought that if he was spying on Zhao Ya or Shan Rou, he would not be as shy as her, and maybe he would even make fun of them. He couldn't help but think of them, and his heart became hot.
Ji Yanran said: "King Huai of Chu was deceived into coming to Qin and died in hardship. The state of Chu was even more devastated. After King Qingxiang came to the throne, he was no longer able to expand to the northeast. He continued to encroach on the land as before, and instead opened up the southwest, sending General Zhuang
Jiao followed the Yuan River into Yunnan, left Qilan, and Keye Yelang, and established a group of vassal states under the rule of Chu. With the support of Dian, the Chu people continued to expand to the southwest, occupying large areas of Ba and Shu, and their power reached directly
Both sides of the river."
Only then did Xiang Shaolong understand a little bit why the Chu people repeatedly backed down in the war against Qin, all because they had no time to visit the north.
Zhao Zhiqi said: "This should be a good thing for the Chu people, but why does Sister Yanran say that they have both gains and losses?"
Ji Yanran said: "It is a good thing to increase the territory, but it must be supported by a strong military. The Chu people were forced by the Qin people and moved their capital three times. For example, after the Qin people occupied Wu and Qian counties, Zhuang Jiao and other Chu nobles
Then they each proclaimed themselves kings, and the Dian, Yelang, Minshan, Qielan, and Zeo kingdoms were not under each other's control. Although the Qingxiang King once counterattacked the Qin Dynasty and took back the fifteen towns beside the river as counties, he was still in a situation of being beaten. So now
King Xiaolie was forced to bring the state to Qin in order to seek peace. He had already lost half of his territory, and had to move his capital southeast to Juyang. After that, although he destroyed Lu again, he still suffered frequent defeats against Qin soldiers, and local forces continued to lose.
After the great prosperity, the capital had to be moved further southeast to Shouchun; the land west of Qingyang fell into the hands of the Qin Dynasty. Now it can only survive, so whenever Li Yuan told me about his plan to revitalize the Chu State, I didn't listen to half of it.
Not pleasant to the ears.”
Zhao Zhidao: "Li Yuan is so confused. He doesn't know that Sister Yanran dislikes Chu people the most."
Ji Yanran said: "You can't say that. Although there is hatred for the country's subjugation, these past hundreds of years have been a history of powerful countries annexing small countries. In terms of the number of countries destroyed, the people of Chu can be the best, unifying half of the country in the southeast. In
The Central Plains has the most extensive and far-reaching influence on culture. After the Yue Kingdom was overthrown, its influence spread along the river to the lower reaches and even to Huai, Si, Nanhai and other places."
After a pause, he continued: "No country in the Central Plains has a more colorful culture than the Chu people. One of the main reasons is that the Chu people annexed dozens of countries and tribes and merged various cultures together through intermarriage.
.But it has become a burden politically. Among the countries today, the local power of Chu State is the most powerful. In many cases, King Xiaolie could not do what he said. Chu State wavered repeatedly in resisting Qin. There was something behind it.
Unspeakable difficulties.”
This is called A Night with Jiao, and it lasted ten years of reading. Xiang Shaolong's imagination immediately expanded to the entire "China" that did not exist at that time. He thought that in the future, the small-sized Qin Shihuang would want to bring so many different countries and cultures to
The nation and talents were united under his banner, and I suddenly felt that the world was vast, and I felt that it was because I had single-handedly created Qin Shihuang that he looked down upon the world.
Amidst the sound of hunting, Uda and the other three people finished bathing and lit torches for them, replacing the dark sky with red light.
The two girls screamed and jumped up.
Wu Da's face was as radiant as if he had been reborn, and he was able to leave with help, which made Xiang Shaolong click his tongue in surprise.
Wentan is their world now.
Seeing the two women undressing and taking off their belts, Xiang Shaolong immediately ignited his love and followed them into the hot pool.
Climb high and fall low, go uphill and downhill.
After walking for five days in the Qinling Mountains, everyone finally realized that they had lost their way.
Although the Qinling Mountains are still full of peaks and peaks and the scenery is amazing, they have lost the mood to appreciate it. Especially at night, the howling of wild wolves comes and goes, as if they are watching all the time, which makes them sleep restlessly.
The only good thing is that Uda gradually recovered and was able to walk on his own, which greatly reduced the physical and psychological burden.
Xiang Shaolong himself has rich marching experience, so he knew that he had identified the sun, moon and stars and headed southeast, and then he felt calm.
I know that the day I cross the Qinling Mountains is the day I arrive somewhere in Chu.
After two more days of travel and two horses falling to death, the terrain began to extend downwards, the climate became warmer, and the original glaciers that chilled the heart and body were no longer visible.
The pine trees were no longer covered with snow, which made them feel better.
That night they found a platform to camp on a mountainside. After dinner, everyone except the night watchman hid in the camp.
There was nothing going on in the mountains, Xiang Shaolong let go of his arms, and he and the two girls felt like a fish in water, never feeling lonely.
Although Ji Yanran and Xiang Shaolong were romantic and affectionate when they were alone, they were very reserved in front of Xiang Shaolong and other wives and maids, not to mention having fun with their roommates.
But under this special situation, and because there was no longer any barrier between him and Zhao Zhi, he opened himself up to the reality in the tent, teaching Xiang Shaolong to enjoy all the happiness.
When they hugged each other and slept, Zhao Zhi said: "Why are the wolves howling so loudly tonight?"
Xiang Shaolong listened carefully and felt that the howling sounds of wolves were concentrated on the low slope in the southeast. Although he felt strange, he would never do it if he were to leave the warm bed, charming wife and tent.
Then he smiled and said: "Maybe I know that there are two delicious beauties with the most tender and tender flesh who will leave them soon, so I held a special farewell party."
The two women took the opportunity to act coquettishly and twisted into a ball under the quilt. The scene in this scene is really not to be shared with outsiders.
Just when the fight was over, the sound of someone shouting suddenly came from the howling of the wolves, and it was extremely confusing.
Xiang Shaolong jumped up, asked the two girls to stay in the camp, and hurried out.
The two girls didn't want to follow, but they just felt so weak and weak that they could only stay.
When Xiang Shaolong rushed out of the tent, everyone went outside the tent. Xiang Shaolong ordered others to stay and guard the camp, lit torches, and joined the five most powerful people, Jing Shan, Jing Qi, Wu Guang, Wu Yan and Wu Shu.
The capable men rushed towards where the sound of people came from.
After climbing over a hilltop, everyone walked down a long slope with crossbows in hand. The sound of wolves howling became clearer, letting them know that the wolves were laying siege to a certain target.
Before they reached the bottom of the thirty-foot-long slope, more than a dozen wolves smelled their scent and turned around and rushed toward them.
They all swooped towards them like dozens of electric fires. Their white teeth and bright green eyes reflecting the light of the fire made their hair stand on end.
Six crossbow arrows were shot.
The six wild wolves fell back to the valley at the bottom of the slope amidst the miserable hissing.
There were still nearly ten wolves charging towards them without fear of death.
Time did not allow them to load their crossbows, so everyone drew their swords and struck at the wolves head-on.
Blood splattered and the wild wolves howled miserably. Those wild wolves were extremely agile. Fortunately, these six people were all highly skilled and their important parts were protected by armor, but they were still difficult to deal with.
Xiang Shaolong had just slashed away a wild wolf, and the other wolf had jumped up from the side and was going towards his throat.
Xiang Shaolong shouted loudly, stretched out his right foot, and hit the wolf in the chest. Unexpectedly, the wolf lowered its head and bit his boot. Fortunately, the sword stabbed the wolf in both eyes, and the wolf fell back with a hiss.
There are two more tooth marks, which shows how sharp the wolf teeth are.
Jing Shan and Jing Qi were used to hunting, and the most remarkable thing was that not only did they not show any fear at all, they even rushed forward with a loud shout. They waved their swords and kicked their feet, taking advantage of the high pressure on the slope, and Huo Huo's waving torch, beating the others away.
The newly joined evil wolf rushed back.
Wu Guang groaned and was knocked to the ground by a wolf that rushed from the side. This kid always relied on his own strength and used his ruthlessness to throw the whole wolf to the side of the slope and hit a pile of rocks.
, but the clothes on his arms were torn and blood was flowing down.
When Xiang Shaolong kicked over another evil wolf that wanted to pounce on Wu Guang, more than a dozen wolves were dead, injured and fled.
Looking around, everyone except Jing Shan was bitten and scratched to some extent. I couldn't help but feel horrified. I didn't expect these wild wolves to be so fierce and powerful.
The howling of wolves has obviously decreased, and faint calls can be heard from the bottom of the slope.
No one expected to meet other people in such deep mountains and valleys. Their curiosity and sympathy aroused, and they forgot about the ferocity of the wolf. They formed a formation, loaded up their crossbows, and headed downhill.
The terrain below the slope is flat and surrounded by mountains. Nearly a hundred hungry wolves gathered at the east end, constantly trying to rush up the rocky slope.
There was a faint light of fire on the top of the slope, but it was close to being extinguished.
Hidden in the shadows, I could only hear voices but not see anyone.
When the hungry wolves saw someone approaching, they dispersed on guard. Several of the ones that came towards them were shot down by crossbow arrows.
This time everyone learned the lesson and used torches to drive away the wolves, while loading new crossbow arrows and shooting continuously.
The evil wolves fell one after another. When Jing Shan and Jing Qi took the lead to the bottom of the short stone slope, the wolves scattered into the distance and did not dare to approach.
Jing Shan and others became addicted to killing, and kept chasing and killing them, which made them lose their previous bad breath.
Xiang Shaolong knew that the wolves were timid, so he felt relieved and shouted up: "Who are our friends up there? Is anyone hurt?"
A figure appeared on the top of the slope, clasping his fists and saying: "Thank you all for your help, heroes. Three of us were bitten by wolves, but none of them are in danger of life. As long as we take more dead branches and light a fire, we should be able to survive until dawn." Xiang
Shaolong heard that his wording was appropriate, but he seemed to have something to hide, or was wary of them, so he didn't invite them to meet them, and he wasn't surprised. He said loudly: "In this case, we are responsible for driving away the wolves.
Brother, come down and get some trees to make a fire."
He said hello to everyone and continued to kill the wolves.